Umbrella assembly

ABSTRACT

An umbrella assembly comprising a base, a pole mounted on the base extending upwardly and outwardly from the base, a carriage slidably mounted on the pole, and an umbrella frame including an adapter releasably engagable with the carriage. A handle is rotatably mounted on the pole, and a cable is coupled at one end to the handle and coupled at another end to the umbrella frame such that by rotating the handle, the cable is retracted and the umbrella is opened, and by rotating the handle in the opposite direction, the cable is released, the umbrella is collapsed, and the carriage is slidable along the pole. The cable is coupled to the adapter such that the adapter may be releasably secured to the umbrella frame to allow the umbrella frame to be tilted and secured in an inclined position.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplications Ser. No. 60/149,026 filed Aug. 13, 1999, and Ser. No.60/158,580 filed Oct. 7, 1999, both of Brian L. Goldwitz, thedisclosures of which are herein incorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to umbrella assemblies, and moreparticularly to foldable umbrellas that may be readily opened andreadily collapsed.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Foldable umbrellas are known in the prior art. For example, U.S. Pat.No. 5,785,069 to Glatz shows a standing umbrella with a mast, a movablecarrier beam, and a connecting strut linking the mast and the carrierbean. A drive mechanism folds the carrier beam relative to the mast, andopens and closes the umbrella. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,678,585 to Mayshows an umbrella with a mast, an elongated boom, and a fitting locatedon the mast that slidably receives the boom. A foldable canopy formingan umbrella is connected to one end of the elongated boom.

One drawback associated with these and other prior art umbrellas is thecomplexity of the mast and associated supporting frame members andconnectors. Having more than one supporting frame member requirescorrespondingly complex drive mechanisms and also increases thelikelihood that an individual component will fail thereby rendering theumbrella assembly inoperable. Moreover, relatively complex supportingframe structures and drive mechanisms increase manufacturing cost, andultimately increase consumer cost.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to overcome theseand other drawbacks and disadvantages of the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to an umbrella assembly comprising abase, a pole, and an umbrella frame. The pole is mounted on the base andextends upwardly and laterally from the base. A handle is mounted on thelower portion of the pole, and a cable extending through the pole iscoupled to the umbrella frame and to the handle. A carriage is slidablyattached to the pole such that it can be moved along the pole from theupper end of the pole to the location of the handle.

The umbrella frame includes an adapter that is connected to the carriagesuch that the umbrella frame is movable with the carriage along thepole. When the handle is rotated in one direction, for exampleclockwise, the cable is retracted, and the adapter is releasably lockedto the umbrella frame and the carriage. Upon further rotating the handlein the same direction, the umbrella frame is extended to an opencondition forming an umbrella located at the upper end of the pole.

Alternatively, when the handle is rotated in the other direction, forexample counter-clockwise, the cable is released and the umbrella frameis retracted to a closed condition at the upper end of the pole. Uponfurther rotating the handle in this direction, the adapter is unlockedfrom the umbrella frame and the carriage to thereby permit the umbrellaframe to pivotally rotate in relation to the adapter. At this point, thecable can be retracted to thereby releasably lock the umbrella frame tothe adapter in an inclined or tilted position, or releasably lock theadapter to the carriage thereby locking the umbrella frame in aninclined or tilted position. The umbrella can be opened by furtherretracting the cable. In contrast, the cable can be further released byturning the handle as previously described and the carriage and umbrellaframe will correspondingly slide along the pole to any position betweenthe upper end of the pole and the location at which the handle ismounted on the pole.

One advantage of the present invention is that the supporting frame forthe umbrella assembly comprises one upright member instead of a mast andboom assembly. Accordingly, a less complicated drive mechanism can beemployed to open and close the umbrella frame, as well as to move theumbrella frame relative to the supporting frame. As a result, thelikelihood that an individual component will fail and render theumbrella assembly inoperable is substantially reduced. Moreover, arelatively simple supporting frame structure and drive mechanism cancorrespondingly decrease the overall manufacturing and consumer cost.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent in view of the following detailed description of the preferredembodiments and accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side perspective view of an umbrella assembly of the presentinvention, showing a pole extending upwardly and laterally from thebase.

FIG. 2 is a side perspective view of another embodiment of an umbrellaassembly of the present invention, showing a curved pole extendingupwardly, rearwardly, and then forwardly from the base.

FIGS. 3–5 are sequential perspective views showing the umbrella assemblyof FIG. 2 and illustrating the collapsing of the umbrella assembly andmovement of the umbrella carrier along the pole.

FIG. 6 is a side elevational and partial schematic view of the umbrellaassembly of FIG. 2, with the umbrella covering removed to show theumbrella frame.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged side elevational view, partly in section, of aportion of the umbrella assembly labeled A in FIG. 6, showing thecarriage connected to the pole, and the adapter connected between thecarriage and the umbrella frame.

FIGS. 8A and 8B are sectional sequential views taken along line 8—8 ofFIG. 7, showing a means for releasably locking the adapter to thecarriage of the umbrella assembly. FIG. 8A illustrates the lockedcondition and FIG. 8B illustrates the unlocked condition.

FIG. 8C is a side sectional view of an endcap that may be inserted intothe upper end of the pole of the umbrella assembly.

FIG. 9 is a side perspective view of the umbrella assembly of FIG. 2with the umbrella shown in an open condition and tilted to one side.

FIG. 10 is an enlarged side elevational view, partly in section, of aportion of the umbrella assembly of FIG. 6, showing the carriage at apoint on the pole some distance away from the endcap, and the adapterconnected between the carriage and the umbrella frame.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are sectional views showing the adapter in the lockedand the unlocked conditions, respectively.

FIG. 11 is a side perspective view of the umbrella assembly of FIG. 2,with the umbrella shown in an open condition and at an inclined angle.

FIGS. 12A and 12B are cross sectional views showing the carriageslidably connected to the pole of the umbrella assembly.

FIG. 12C is a plan view of a track for engaging the carriage.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

As shown in FIG. 1, an umbrella assembly 10 of the present inventioncomprises a base 12, a pole 14 mounted on the base 12, a carriage 16slidably mounted on the pole 14, an adapter 18 coupled to the carriage16, an umbrella frame 20 coupled to the adapter 18, and a cover 22attached to the umbrella frame 20. The pole 14 further includes a firstor lower portion 24 extending upwardly from the base 12, and a second orupper portion 26 extending laterally outwardly away from the base. Ahandle 28 is rotatably mounted on the pole 14 in a known manner. Theumbrella assembly 10 is shown in an open condition wherein the umbrellaframe 20 is held in a fully extended position to thereby place the cover22 in a conventional umbrella position.

It will be appreciated that the base 12 and pole 14 each may include avariety of configurations depending on the particular application. Forexample, the base 12 may be mounted to a wall, door or other structure(none of which are shown) but is preferably set on a ground surface asillustrated. Also, the pole 14 may extend in various directions atvarious angles from the base depending upon the application and locationof a table, item or person to be covered by the umbrella assembly.Further, the pole 14 can also include a plurality of differentcross-sectional configurations such as, for example, cylindrical,square, rectangular, and hexagonal, and is preferably a hollow ortubular configuration. As described in more detail below, thisconfiguration advantageously houses and protects a means for opening andclosing the umbrella.

FIG. 2 shows another embodiment of an umbrella assembly in accordancewith the present invention generally at 110 which may be similar to theembodiment discussed above and wherein like elements are indicated bylike reference numerals preceded by the numeral 1. As discussed infurther detail below, a pole 114 similar to pole 14 discussed above hasan arcuate outer configuration as opposed to a generally linearconfiguration shown in FIG. 1. It will be appreciated that eitherconfiguration may be more advantageous than the other depending upon theapplication.

In the embodiment of FIG. 2, the umbrella assembly 110 comprises a base112, a pole 114, a carriage 116, an adapter 118, an umbrella frame 120,a cover 122, and a handle 128. The pole 114 includes a first or lowerportion 124 and a second or upper portion 126. The lower portion 124further includes a first length 130 immediately adjacent to the base 112extending upwardly, a second length 132 extending upwardly from thefirst length 130 and curved rearwardly in relation to the umbrella frame120, and a third length 134 extending upwardly from the second length132 and curved inwardly in relation to the umbrella frame 120.

It will be understood that the following description of further detailsof the embodiment of FIG. 2 is equally applicable, e.g., to theembodiment of FIG. 1 and other configurations of the pole and thus isnot intended to be limiting in any manner.

Referring now to FIGS. 3 through 5, the umbrella assembly 110 isillustrated in the sequences of collapsing the umbrella frame 120 andmoving the carriage 116 along the pole 114 to a storage condition thatmay be accomplished via rotation of the handle 128. In particular, acable 136 is coupled at one end to the adapter 118, which is in turnconnected to the umbrella frame 120. The cable 136 is coupled at anotherend to the handle 128 mounted to the lower portion 124 of the pole 114.By rotating the handle 128 in a first direction, for example clockwise,the cable 136 is tensioned or retracted, and in turn the umbrella frame120 is extended into an open condition spaced laterally from the base112 on the upper portion 126 of the pole 114 as shown in FIG. 2.

When the handle 128 is rotated in a second direction, for examplecounter-clockwise, the cable 136 is released, and in turn the umbrellaframe 120 is collapsed into a closed condition spaced laterally inrelation to the base 112 on the upper portion 126 of the pole 114 asshown in FIG. 3. By further rotating the handle 128 in the seconddirection to thereby further release the cable, the carriage 116slidably moves laterally toward to the base 112 along the upper portion126 of the pole 114, to a lowermost point approximately adjacent to thehandle 128 as shown in FIG. 5.

As illustrated in FIG. 6, the umbrella frame 120 comprises hinged fabricsupport bars 133 and hinged cross bars 135 which cooperate to open andclose the umbrella frame 120 as discussed above. As previously describedand shown in more detail in FIG. 6, the cable 136 terminates at a hub137 of the umbrella frame 120 and is coupled to the adapter 118, thecarriage 116, and the handle 128. When the cable 136 is tensioned orretracted, the umbrella frame 120 is pulled upwardly to thereby extendthe umbrella frame 120 into an open condition. When the cable 136 isreleased, the umbrella frame 120 is pulled downwardly by gravity tothereby collapse the umbrella frame 120 into a closed condition.

As shown in FIG. 6 and in further detail in FIGS. 7, 8A, 8B and 8C anendcap 138 is mounted to upper end 140 of the pole 114. The endcap 138functions to prevent the carriage 116 from moving off the upper end 140of the pole 114. The endcap 138 comprises a rotatable pulley 144, orlike cable guide, to guide cable 136 through the upper end 140 of thepole 114 and into the adapter 118.

Referring now to FIGS. 8A, 8B and 8C the end 146 of endcap 138 includesan engaging means, for example, teeth 148. Similarly, the carriage 116defines a corresponding engaging means, e.g., teeth, 150 for releasablylocking with the teeth 148 of the endcap 138 to prevent relativerotation of the carriage with respect to the endcap.

The cable 136 is coupled to the umbrella frame 120 such that the teeth150 of the carriage are urged into engagement with teeth 148 of theendcap 138 as shown in FIG. 8A when the cable 136 is tensioned. Inparticular, the tension on the cable 136 forces the carriage 116 in theopposite direction or upwardly. It will be understood that uponreleasing tension in cable 136 the teeth 150 of the carriage 116 and theteeth 148 of the endcap 138 disengage, as shown in FIG. 8B.

When teeth 148 and 150 are disengaged, the umbrella frame may be tiltedto an inclined position relative to a horizontal plane, in right andleft directions in relation to the pole 114 as shown in FIG. 9.Thereafter, the cable 136 can be tensioned to engage teeth 148 and also,in turn, the endcap 138 and the carriage 116 to thereby secure theumbrella frame 120 in the inclined position.

As shown in FIGS. 10, 10A and 10B, the adapter 118 comprises a ball 152and a socket 154. As shown in detail in FIGS. 10A and 10B, the ball 152and socket 154 each include corresponding engagement means, for examplecorresponding depressed and raised surfaces, e.g. depressed surfaces 155and raised surfaces 157 best seen in FIG. 10B, which together functionto releasably lock the ball 152 and socket 154 in a selected position.The cable 136 is coupled to the adapter 118 via a pulley 115 so that theball 152 and socket 154 are responsive to tensioning of the cable 136to, in turn, releasably lock the ball 152 and socket 154 together, asshown in FIG. 10A. The ball 152 and socket 154 may be unlocked viauntensioning of cable 136, thereby releasing the force on pulley 115, asshown on FIG. 10B.

The releasably lockable engagable means 156 and 158 allow the umbrellaframe to be tilted in an inclined position relative to a horizontalplane, in an upward and downward directions in relation to the pole 114as shown in FIG. 11. When the cable 136 is released such that the ball152 and socket 154 are disengaged from one another, the umbrella frame120 can be tilted into an inclined position. Thereafter, the cable 136can be tensioned to couple the ball 152 and socket 154 because of theassociated force on pulley 155 to thereby secure the umbrella frame 120in the inclined position.

As shown in FIGS. 12A, 12B and 12C, the pole 114 comprises a track 160mounted thereon for slidably engaging the carriage 116. The track 160includes protuberances 162 frictionally received within correspondingapertures 164 in the pole 114. The track 160 can be mounted to the pole114 by any one of numerous means known such as employing an adhesive ora fastening means such as a rivet. The carriage 116 includes anelongated slot 166 for slidably engaging track 160 as shown in FIG. 12B.As described above, by rotating the handle 128 in the directioncorresponding to releasing the cable 136, the carriage 116 moveslaterally along pole 114, and slidably engages track 160.

As may be recognized by those skilled in the pertinent art based on theteachings herein, any of the releasably engagable means or the cableretracting and releasing means employed in an umbrella assembly of thepresent invention may take any of numerous different shapes,configurations, and/or types of such means that are currently or laterbecome known for performing the functions of the means described herein.For example, rather than employing engagable teeth or raised anddepressed surfaces to couple the carriage and the endcap or the adapterball and socket, any one of numerous detachable fasteners such as alocking pin or clevis pin can be used. Similarly, rather than selectinga handle to retract and release the cable, a crank, knob, or wheel canbe used.

One advantage to the umbrella assembly of the present invention is thatafter the umbrella frame is collapsed, it can easily be moved away fromthe upper end of the pole without employing any additional mechanicalmeans. Additionally, there are no lateral or upright frame members thathave to be moved in order to move the umbrella frame, and therefore lessspace is required to collapse and move the umbrella frame of the presentinvention.

As may be recognized by those skilled in the pertinent art based on theteachings herein, numerous other changes and modifications may be madeto the above-described and other embodiments of the present inventionwithout departing from its scope as defined in the appended claims.Accordingly, this detailed description of preferred embodiments is to betaken in an illustrative, as opposed to a limiting sense.

1. An umbrella assembly, comprising a base; a pole mounted on the baseincluding a lower portion extending upwardly from the base, and an upperportion extending laterally from the base, a carriage slidably mountedon the pole; an umbrella frame including an adapter coupled to thecarriage; a handle rotatably mounted on the pole; and a cable coupled atone end to the handle and coupled at another end to the umbrella frame;wherein the handle is (i) rotatable in a first direction to therebyretract the cable and in turn move the carriage to a location spacedlaterally from the base on the upper portion of the pole and, in turn,extend the umbrella frame into an open condition, (ii) rotatable in asecond direction to release the cable and in turn collapse the umbrellaframe into a closed condition spaced laterally outwardly in relation tothe base on the upper portion of the pole, and (iii) further rotatablein the second direction to slidably move the carriage laterally inwardlyin relation to the base along the upper portion of the pole.
 2. Anumbrella assembly as defined in claim 1, wherein the cable is coupled tothe adapter and the adapter is configured to be responsive tountensioning of the cable to allow the umbrella frame to be tilted in aninclined position relative to a horizontal plane, and responsive totensioning of the cable to thereby secure the umbrella frame in theinclined position.
 3. An umbrella assembly as defined in claim 1,further comprising a cover detachably fastened to the umbrella frame. 4.An umbrella assembly as defined in claim 1, wherein the carriage isslidably mounted on the pole and slidable over the pole.
 5. An umbrellaassembly as defined in claim 1, wherein the carriage is slidably mountedon the pole and slidable within the pole.
 6. An umbrella assembly asdefined in claim 1, wherein the handle is mounted on the lower portionof the pole.
 7. An umbrella assembly as defined in claim 1, wherein thepole defines a tubular configuration.
 8. An umbrella assembly as definedin claim 7, where in the pole defines a cylindrical cross-sectionalconfiguration.
 9. An umbrella assembly as defined in claim 1, whereinthe pole extends upwardly and laterally outwardly from the base, andlaterally rearwardly from the base in relation to the umbrella frame.10. An umbrella assembly as defined in claim 9, wherein the lowerportion of the pole further includes a first end immediately adjacent tothe base extending upwardly from the base, and a second end extendingrearwardly from the base in relation to the umbrella frame.
 11. Anumbrella assembly as defined in claim 1, wherein the pole includesarcuate and straight sections.
 12. An umbrella assembly as defined inclaim 1, further comprising an endcap wherein a first end of the endcapis slidably mounted in a first end of the pole opposite to a second endof the pole mounted on the base, and a second end of the endcap islarger in diameter than the pole to thereby prevent the carriage frommoving off the end of the pole in which the endcap is mounted.
 13. Anumbrella assembly as defined in claim 12, wherein the carriage andendcap arc configured to be responsive to untensioning of the cable todisengage the carriage from the endcap thereby allowing the umbrellaframe to be moved to an inclined position relative to a horizontalplane, and responsive to tensioning of the cable to couple the endcapand the carriage together and thereby secure the umbrella frame in theinclined position.
 14. An umbrella assembly as defined in claim 1,further comprising a track mounted on the pole and an elongated slotformed in the carriage for slidably receiving the track.
 15. An umbrellaassembly, comprising: a base; a pole extending from the base andincluding a first portion and a second portion extending in a generallyradial direction from the longitudinal direction of the first portion ofthe pole, a carriage slidably disposed on the pole; an umbrella frameinterconnected with the carriage; a handle rotatably mounted on thepole; and a cable coupled at one end to the handle and coupled atanother end to the umbrella frame; wherein the handle is (i) rotatablein a first direction to thereby extend the umbrella frame into an opencondition spaced laterally from the first portion of the pole and beinglocated on the second portion of the pole, (ii) and rotatable in asecond direction to thereby collapse the umbrella frame into a closedcondition and (iii) move the carriage toward the first portion along thesecond portion of the pole.
 16. An umbrella assembly, comprising: abase: a pole extending from the base and having a first end disposedproximal to the base and a second end disposed distal from the base; acarriage movably disposed on the pole; an umbrella frame supporting acover and both the umbrella frame and cover being movable with thecarriage; means for actuating the carriage and the umbrella frame for(i) moving umbrella frame to the second end of the pole and extendingthe umbrella frame into an open condition, wherein the means foractuating is configured to allow the umbrella frame to be tilted in aninclined position relative to a horizontal plane to thereby secure theumbrella frame in the inclined position, and (ii) collapsing theumbrella frame into a closed condition and moving the carriage directlyalong the pole toward the first end of the pole.
 17. An umbrellaassembly as defined in claim 16, wherein the actuation means comprises:a handle rotatably mounted on the pole; and a cable coupled at one endto the handle and coupled at another end to the umbrella frame.
 18. Andumbrella assembly as defined in claim 17, further comprising an adaptercoupled to the carriage, wherein the adapter is configured to beresponsive to tensioning of the cable to secure the umbrella frame at apredetermined orientation and responsive to untensioning of the cable toallow the umbrella frame to be movable to another orientation.
 19. Anumbrella assembly as defined in claim 17, further comprising an endcapdisposed at the second end of the pole and wherein the carriage andendcap are configured to be responsive to tensioning of the cable tosecure the carriage at a predetermined orientation and responsive tountensioning of the cable to allow movement of the carriage to anotherorientation.
 20. An umbrella assembly comprising: a base; a pole mountedon the base; a carriage slidably mounted on the pole; an umbrella framecoupled to the carriage; a handle rotatably mounted on the pole; and acable coupled at one end to the handle and coupled at another end to theumbrella frame; and an endcap mounted in a first end of the poleopposite to a second end of the pole mounted on the base, the endcaphaving means for selectively engaging the carriage for preventingrelative rotation of the umbrella frame, and wherein the handle is (i)rotatable in a first direction to thereby retract the cable and, inturn, move the carriage toward the first end of the pole, extend theumbrella frame into an open condition and bring the endcap means intoengagement with the carriage, and (ii) rotatable in a second directionto release the cable and in turn collapse the umbrella frame into aclosed condition, and release the endcap means from engagement with thecarriage and move the carriage toward the second end of the pole.
 21. Anumbrella assembly as recited in claim 20, wherein the endcap means areteeth.
 22. An umbrella assembly as recited in claim 21, furthercomprising teeth on the carriage for engaging the endcap teeth.
 23. Anumbrella assembly with an adjustable umbrella frame, comprising: a base;a pole mounted on the base; an adapter having a ball first mounted onthe pole and a socket selectively coupled to the first portion, whereinthe ball and socket have raised and depressed surfaces; an umbrellaframe mounted to the second portion of the adapter; a handle rotatablymounted on the pole; and a cable coupled at one end to the handle andcoupled at another end to the umbrella frame; and wherein the handle is(i) rotatable in a first direction to thereby retract the cable and, inturn, extend the umbrella frame into an open condition and bring thesecond portion into fixed engagement with the first portion of theadapter, and (ii) rotatable in a second direction to release the cableand, in turn, collapse the umbrella frame into a closed condition, andrelease the second portion from fixed engagement with the first portionof the adapter.
 24. An umbrella assembly as recited in claim 23, furthercomprising an endcap mounted in a first end of the pole opposite to asecond end of the pole mounted on the base, the endcap having means forselectively engaging the adapter for preventing relative rotation of theumbrella frame.
 25. An umbrella assembly comprising: a base; a polemounted on the base including a lower portion extending from the base,and an upper portion connected to the lower portion; a carriage slidablymounted on the pole; an umbrella frame including an adapter coupled tothe carriage; a handle rotatably mounted on the pole; and a cablecoupled at one end to the handle and coupled at another end to theumbrella frame; and an endcap mounted in a first end of the poleopposite to a second end of the pole mounted on the base, wherein theendcap is larger in diameter than the pole to thereby prevent thecarriage from moving off the first end of the pole, said endcap havingmeans for selectively engaging the carriage and wherein the handle is(i) rotatable in a first direction to thereby retract the cable and inturn move the carriage to a preselected location on the upper portion ofthe pole and, in turn, extend the umbrella frame into an open condition,and (ii) rotatable in a second direction to release the cable and inturn collapse the umbrella frame into a closed condition, and toslidably move the carriage along the upper portion of the pole towardthe lower portion of the pole.